Repeat Prescription Nightmare

I get my prescriptions picked up by the local chemist.

Phoned surgery 22nd April ordered 3 items. Chemist pick up on a Tuesday and Friday from my surgery, called on Saturday and no meds as no prescription was in the surgery to collect. Phoned surgery Monday nightmare after the weekend, 50 minutes on the phone got through receptionist said it was picked up. Phone chemist, the girl said no not there but will get the driver who collects from my surgery. I phoned her mid-afternoon and no driver collection all the ready prescriptions and delivered to the different chemists. She phoned the other chemists on the route he did, and they did not have my prescription, so prescription getting reprinted. The driver called on Tuesday and no prescription printed for me, so today I ring chemist and again no prescription! Pharmacist phoned my surgery and told the prescription was printed but needed to be signed off with the in surgery pharmacist. So the chemist is sending the driver down again this afternoon to try to get my prescription. The original prescription was printed, but the surgery could not say if it had been cleared

Now, over the last few years this has happened to me, surgery insists prescription sent and the chemist saying no they log on their computer every prescription they receive before making it up. This will be the 3rd time, so I make sure to order any prescriptions well in advance. I actually thought my surgery had a grudge against at one point, as prescriptions seem to vanish into thin air, no one knows what happens. I remember talking to the surgery manager at point and just told they print XXX prescriptions every day and very rarely something can go wrong.

@donna255

Tldr your full post but:

If you can, use the e-prescriptions service. You register the nominated pharmacy. Then when you order your repeat prescription from the GP, online or via the NHS app or over phone, they automatically e-send the authorised prescription to the pharmacy, electronically.

The pharmacy does not have to collect a paper or other prescription from the GP. They receive the prescriptions authorised on their computer at the pharmacy, from the GP. No paper to lose/forget.

You can then just go to the pharmacy and pick up when ready. Usually within a day or 2 if items in stock. Very efficient.

More fiddly if you like to use different pharmacies and not a regular nominated one.

I have a chronic health condition and get my medication from the hospital pharmacy. It's a bit of a faff because you have to leave an answerphone message (I hate leaving a message on a machine). A couple of years ago the nurse would ring you back saying the doctor has signed it off and it's been sent to the hospital pharmacy (they won't send it to a local one). They then stopped phoning you so I had to ring to chase it up as I had no idea if it had been done (often it hadn't been done, or the doctor won't sign it off).

I always ordered meds around 2-3 weeks early. Once I left it for ten days before ringing the hospital pharmacy who said they hadn't received it (they used to text to say it was ready but stopped doing that). I left another message and was pretty cross. And then when you do pick up the meds at the outpatients pharmacy there is always a very long queue even to just pick up what is waiting for you. They normally give me 3 months supply but if my blood results are not good I just get one month. So have to almost immediately order again.

But a couple of weeks ago I was ordering a repeat GP prescription online and saw they added my hospital meds to the list. I was almost due to order anyway so ordered that as well. It was signed off within 2 days, sent electronically and I picked them up at my nominated pharmacy. They only gave me 1 month but easy to order online. This will make a huge difference.

What annoys me is that my health condition is seriously affected by stress. No-one seems to care about the flare ups I get just trying to access the medication they want me to take.

Sorry, rant over!

Muttley said:

I have a chronic health condition and get my medication from the hospital pharmacy. It's a bit of a faff because you have to leave an answerphone message (I hate leaving a message on a machine). A couple of years ago the nurse would ring you back saying the doctor has signed it off and it's been sent to the hospital pharmacy (they won't send it to a local one). They then stopped phoning you so I had to ring to chase it up as I had no idea if it had been done (often it hadn't been done, or the doctor won't sign it off).

I always ordered meds around 2-3 weeks early. Once I left it for ten days before ringing the hospital pharmacy who said they hadn't received it (they used to text to say it was ready but stopped doing that). I left another message and was pretty cross. And then when you do pick up the meds at the outpatients pharmacy there is always a very long queue even to just pick up what is waiting for you. They normally give me 3 months supply but if my blood results are not good I just get one month. So have to almost immediately order again.

But a couple of weeks ago I was ordering a repeat GP prescription online and saw they added my hospital meds to the list. I was almost due to order anyway so ordered that as well. It was signed off within 2 days, sent electronically and I picked them up at my nominated pharmacy. They only gave me 1 month but easy to order online. This will make a huge difference.

What annoys me is that my health condition is seriously affected by stress. No-one seems to care about the flare ups I get just trying to access the medication they want me to take.

Sorry, rant over!

Click to expand...

This seems pretty typical NHS, similar to what you hear time and time again - rarely any joined-up thinking and no consideration of the stress caused to the patient who has nothing better to do than keep ringing.

Muttley said:

I have a chronic health condition and get my medication from the hospital pharmacy. It's a bit of a faff because you have to leave an answerphone message (I hate leaving a message on a machine). A couple of years ago the nurse would ring you back saying the doctor has signed it off and it's been sent to the hospital pharmacy (they won't send it to a local one). They then stopped phoning you so I had to ring to chase it up as I had no idea if it had been done (often it hadn't been done, or the doctor won't sign it off).

I always ordered meds around 2-3 weeks early. Once I left it for ten days before ringing the hospital pharmacy who said they hadn't received it (they used to text to say it was ready but stopped doing that). I left another message and was pretty cross. And then when you do pick up the meds at the outpatients pharmacy there is always a very long queue even to just pick up what is waiting for you. They normally give me 3 months supply but if my blood results are not good I just get one month. So have to almost immediately order again.

But a couple of weeks ago I was ordering a repeat GP prescription online and saw they added my hospital meds to the list. I was almost due to order anyway so ordered that as well. It was signed off within 2 days, sent electronically and I picked them up at my nominated pharmacy. They only gave me 1 month but easy to order online. This will make a huge difference.

What annoys me is that my health condition is seriously affected by stress. No-one seems to care about the flare ups I get just trying to access the medication they want me to take.

Sorry, rant over!

Click to expand...

Great, so you can get all the meds you need via the GP and sent as e-prescription to the pharmacy.

It's only when an in-patient or at hospital when they prescribe something that you have to get it from the hospital pharmacy.

Everything regular for ongoing conditions should be available to be prescribed by your GP.

PhaedrusR said:

Great, so you can get all the meds you need via the GP and sent as e-prescription to the pharmacy.

It's only when an in-patient or at hospital when they prescribe something that you have to get it from the hospital pharmacy.

Everything regular for ongoing conditions should be available to be prescribed by your GP.

Click to expand...

Yes, if this works it should make my life a lot easier. You just can't believe the amount of stress just trying to order regular medication caused. The hospital could only send the prescription to the outpatient pharmacy, at least with my GP I've got more options. And with my GP, because I order the prescription online, I can check a couple of days later if it has been approved.

My GP will not send an e prescription. The in-house pharmacist has to reissue and send a proper paper copy. Now, I always order prescriptions if possible a week before it is due to make sure it is available, the outline thing will not let me do this. I am in N.I. so our rules might be different? My GP does have an online ordering system, but it is crap you will not see if anything is approved and not let you order a week early.

I sometimes admit I forget I have ordered an item and then phone up and reorder, so the paper list I get is a big help as I keep and tick and see what I actually ordered.

I order mine on the NHS app and the request, once approved by the doctor, gets sent straight to the pharmacist which is attached to the surgery. Thankfully I have never had an issue and they’re always ready to collect when I go in.

(I hope I’m not tempting fate by saying that. )

PhaedrusR said:

Great, so you can get all the meds you need via the GP and sent as e-prescription to the pharmacy.

It's only when an in-patient or at hospital when they prescribe something that you have to get it from the hospital pharmacy.

Everything regular for ongoing conditions should be available to be prescribed by your GP.

Click to expand...

Hubby has sometimes had a problem ordering prescriptions on the App but as pharmacy is next door to the surgery he just pops round and tells them. Only problem is it means a trip back to the pharmacy a few days later.
I've found you can now track your prescription on the App so at least you know it's been done.
Our pharmacy now only prints prescriptions off when you go to collect them due to the huge number that never get picked up. One of the assistants showed me boxes full of medication that wasn't picked up.!!!
We could get the medicines delivered but you have to stay in as there is no way of knowing what day or time they will bring it.

I had to call into the chemist and collect some prescriptions. So I asked about e prescriptions and told only in England not Northern Ireland.

donna255 said:

I had to call into the chemist and collect some prescriptions. So I asked about e prescriptions and told only in England not Northern Ireland.

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Oh that's a shame it's a lot easier.

Patsy said:

Hubby has sometimes had a problem ordering prescriptions on the App but as pharmacy is next door to the surgery he just pops round and tells them. Only problem is it means a trip back to the pharmacy a few days later.
I've found you can now track your prescription on the App so at least you know it's been done.
Our pharmacy now only prints prescriptions off when you go to collect them due to the huge number that never get picked up. One of the assistants showed me boxes full of medication that wasn't picked up.!!!
We could get the medicines delivered but you have to stay in as there is no way of knowing what day or time they will bring it.

Click to expand...

Not tried the NHS app.
Our GP practice has a website and order on there via 3rd party accurx website service, as offered to multiple practices.

Toril said:

I order mine on the NHS app and the request, once approved by the doctor, gets sent straight to the pharmacist which is attached to the surgery. Thankfully I have never had an issue and they’re always ready to collect when I go in.

(I hope I’m not tempting fate by saying that. )

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Mine has worked OK as well, occasionally they take a week to authorise it so I send it early. And once it said that it was still awaiting authorisation so I phoned up (hanging on for 20 minutes!). They said it had been authorised, maybe they didn't update the computer record. Naturally I didn't believe them so phoned the pharmacy and it had been sitting there for 4 days!

PhaedrusR said:

Not tried the NHS app.
Our GP practice has a website and order on there via 3rd party accurx website service, as offered to multiple practices.

Click to expand...

I did that initially, the surgery were encouraging it, but this just covers GP information. I had a separate provider for my regular hospital appointments.

The NHS app covers both GP and hospital info, you can see it all in one place.